As a new staff member and customer at the wonderful Kitchen Boutique this Trudeau 2-In-1 Glass Rimmer was one of the first things that caught my eye and was an immediate must have!

This 2-In-1 Glass Rimmer is perfect in all ways: a deep rimmer, allowing you to rim any size glass with your favorite mix, (mine is Montreal Steak Spice and celery salt) as well as an integrated juicer. In the past I have used two separate saucers, one with my steak spice mix and one with lime juice. Now that I have this new glass rimmer, that, along with constantly refilling my lime juice and wasting my rim mix, is a thing of the past. I can now serve Caesars to my friends that look as if they were prepared at the local pub, save my rim mix ( the rimmer snaps shut for easy storage!!!) and never worry about refilling my silly saucer of lime juice!!! And if that all wasn’t enough to have me hooked, the reasonable price definitely was. I am one happy Caesar drinker!

Fruit Bouquet – great for teachers, summer parties, house-warming or simply a new way to eat more fruit!

I’ve been trying to figure out what to do for my kids’ teachers present this year and stumbled upon “Edible Arrangements” – Fruit bouquets and decided to give them a try myself. Except for a lot of prep work, they are really easy and both of my kids (6 & 7 years old) were able to help make them.

I don’t recommend using bannana as it goes off really quickly and can fall off the skewers really easily.

Cake Mix x 1 (This will make two small bouquets)

Cellophane& ribbon (optional)

Chocolate candy melts (optional)

Melon baller

Skewers – for this I used 6″ and 10″ skewers, but if available, I would also recommend some 8″ ones too.

Small Flower pot x2 (or you can use the inside of the pineapple also)

To get started, you need to bake the cake mixes in any pans you want… don’t worry what shape – because you are just going to smoosh them inside of the flower pot or pineapple. This makes it look like dirt:)

Then once your cake is inside your pots, you are ready to start building your bouquet…

Try different combinations of skewers, but in the very middle, I would put a flower skewer. To make the flower, all I did was cut an apple in slices (cut with the top and the butt in between your hands and slice across – you’ve done it right if you get some that have a “star” in the middle) – then I took my paring knife and cut it out to make flower petals. By alternating some fruit on the stick: grape/pineapple/grape upto the top, I then added the apple flower and a rounded piece of melon (using the melon baller tool).

Add as many skewers as you like until the bouquet is full.

I did some skewers dipped in chocolate. I used the Wilton Candy Melts (which can just be put in the microwave to get them to be melted quickly) and dipped my strawberries and pineapple in them and put them aside separately so that the chocolate would dry before putting them in the bouquet.

Once they are all finished, you can wrap them in cellophane and tie with some ribbon, or you can just leave them out.

Today seems like a great day for a long-weekend picnic in Kananaskis Country – we’ve got a ton of really great picnic items… they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes…

and we even have some really great picnic blankets…

These picnic blankets have a water-resistant PEVA side to put down on top of wet grass and a fuzzy/cuddly side to stay warm and dry on. They fold nicely into an easy-to-carry tote. With a variety of colour/pattern options they make for a great gift. I love them personally to take to the kid’s soccer practice or for simply sitting out on the lawn.

Also check out this fab Party Cooler with Umbrella stand…

It is so nice to have spring/summer arriving… I hope the weather continues – knock on wood!

What are they, you ask? They are only the most delectable and cutest cake treats in bite-size form!! These adorable desserts are becoming the talk of the baking town but not all of us are sure of how to make them. Have no fear, after you are done reading this, you too, can make creative and delicious cake pops! I am going to give you the steps you need to make a basic cake pop. Once you have the basics down, you can try many different shapes and designs and techniques. Lets get started:

What you will need:

1 Box of Cake Mix (your choice)

1 Can of Frosting (your choice)

1lbs Wilton Candy Melts (any color/flavor you desire)

*I used two bags of Wilton Yellow Candy Melts for this demo*

Wax Paper

Cookie Sheet

1 Package of Lollipop Sticks

Decorations of your choice

Optional: (but helpful) Cookie scoop

Steps:

1. Bake cake according to directions in a 9×13″ baking pan. After cooked, let cool completely.

2. Crumble cake (using your hands) into a large bowl.

3. Add a can of frosting to the crumbled mixture using the back of a large spoon to mix the icing into the cake mix. Add a few tablespoons at a time as to not over saturate the cake. The consistency when the cake is ready should be similar to that of a ground beef mixture when making meatballs.

4. Once you are happy with the consistency, you can then use a spoon or a cookie scoop to measure out equal amounts of cake and roll using your hands, to make balls.

5. Place your rolled cake balls onto a wax covered cookie sheet and place in the fridge or a cool place for 10-15 minutes.

6. Once chilled, you can prepare your candy melts by microwaving in a microwave safe bowl. Make sure your bowl is not too deep as it will make it more difficult to keep your pops on their sticks.

7. Once your chocolate is melted, take your cake pops out of the fridge, and dip the end of each lollipop stick into the melted chocolate. This will ensure the stick and cake ball stay together when rolling in the chocolate.

8. Once all your lollipop sticks have been put in all the cake pops, you must chill them for 5-10 more minutes. (Make sure to not let the cake pops get TOO cold. If they are too cold, they will crack the layer of chocolate once rolled.

9. After chilling for a few minutes, you may now dip your cake balls in your chocolate melts. Use a spoon if you need to cover the top of the pop. Once you have taken the pop out of the chocolate, tap the end of the lollipop stick gently to shake off any excess chocolate on the pop.

10. If you prefer to have the cake pop fully round, you can insert the lollipop stick into a block of Styrofoam to hold it upright while it dries. For this demonstration, I have placed the cake pops directly upside down onto the wax paper.

11. Once your cake balls are all covered in chocolate, you can cool them for another 5-10 minutes. Once they are cool, you are free to decorate them however you please! I choose to make little yellow baby chicks since Easter is on its way and so is SPRING!! I used the leftover melted chocolate to adhere the decorations to the pops.

For the cute baby chicks, I used Wilton’s Edible Candy Eyeballs for the eyes, mini gingerbread men sprinkles for the feet and 1/2 of a orange chocolate sunflower seed for the nose. The arms are made out of mini edible yellow chocolate sprinkles I had found in my pantry – but there are lots of different decorations you can use that look just as great.

I hope this helps many of you who have always wanted to make Cake Pops but didn’t know how. There are a few steps involved but the first bite makes every step worth it!!

We have just received our Wellnessmats order in and we have a great selection!

These are absolutely the best anti-fatigue mat around. They boast a 7 year warranty plus the following:

Unmatched comfort

Premium 3/4″ thick

Edges will never curl

No-trip 20° beveled edge

Anti-microbial (by design)

Puncture & heat resistant

Stain & dirt resistant

Easy to clean

Safe & non-toxic (PVC-Free)

They feel heavenly on your legs after a long day of standing around. We can all attest to their fabulous performance as we have one behind the counter at each store.

They are available in 5 colours: black, grey, burgundy, brown and tan.

They are available in 3 motifs: Bella (as pictured above), Trellis (below left) and in just solid (bottom centre).

In the store – we carry the 3’x2′ size, but they can be ordered in a variety of shapes and sizes.

The 3’x2′ are $140 and are available in-store.

The 6’x2′ are $280 (approximately – depending on US exchange rates) and can be special ordered in.

Wellnessmats have just launched a new innovative product – mat covers that come in a multitude of designs and colours that fit snuggly over your mats – so you can dress ’em up or dress ’em down – depending on the season.

For the first 6 customers – we will be giving away a new mat cover – a gift with purchase to try out!

If you’ve been thinking about getting a new mat and are ready to splurge out on the best one out there – this is the best time to do it! Cbreeze

The RSVP Onion Goggles are one of my favourite gadgets and recommendations for Christmas Stocking Stuffers! Formerly, I used my ski goggles, (because I needed something thick enough to fit over my glasses), but since having my eyes lazered, I needed a new option that was streamlined and functional – and these were it!

Lampe Berger is the most amazing line in the store right now. If you are looking for a unique and exquisite gift for someone who has everything – this is it.

Kills 67% of Air-born bacteria – which means these are positively fantastic for destroying the bacteria that is passed around during cold/flu season. They are also useful to get rid of cooking, smoking and pet odours!

Made by renowned designers

Looks beautiful on a mantel piece as a piece of art/decor when not in use.

Simple to use

Starter Sets are available from $40 which include a small bottle of neutral.